Generics are still out of reach: Tell Teva to lower the price of lifesaving EpiPens

Over the last eleven years, EpiPens have gotten more expensive and more scarce.

Since Mylan bought EpiPen in 2007, they’ve increased the price from $100 to over $600 for a two-pack. But Myan has also had issues keeping up with demand, with supplies running out regularly. Kids and adults with severe peanut, bee, and other allergies could go into anaphylactic shock and die without this life saving drug. That’s why the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) pushed for Teva Pharmaceutical USA to sell a cheaper generic version of the EpiPen in August 2018.

But Teva’s generic EpiPen is still out of reach for many, with a price tag of $300 for a two pack! That’s the same as Myan’s generic version. This isn’t what the FDA had in mind. Generics should be more affordable. Demand Teva lower the price of their EpiPens!

While Teva’s generic EpiPen is less than the name brand’s sticker price, it is still three times the cost of the original EpiPen. It’s an anaphylaxis-reversing injector, essentially EpiPens allow people to save themselves if they come into contact with things they are allergic to. Fifteen million Americans have food allergies, and that includes six million kids. An estimated 2.4 million children have had a life threatening event where they needed an EpiPen. When the FDA approved Teva’s generic, they intended for Teva to help lower the cost and increase the supply. Tell Teva to cut the price of generic EpiPens.

Healthcare in America is changing. Next year the healthcare mandate, that is intended to encourage people to have insurance, will no longer be enforced. So there may be many more uninsured Americans who need EpiPens. The potential consumption of peanuts and other high-allergy foods shouldn’t cost someone their life. Lives are on the line. Tell Teva to make their generic EpiPens affordable.